Useful Resources

Dear students,

I have put together a number of online resources that should help you with your preparations for university. I have also included a number of other resources to help you with your English in general.

University Resources

This handout from the University of Indiana provides very clear guidelines for writing personal statements and application letters:

http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/personal_statements.pdf 

http://www.indiana.edu/~cwp/pamphlets.shtml

The following link provides invaluable information on avoiding plagiarism:

http://www2.tech.purdue.edu/cit/Courses/cit556/misc/plagiarism.pdf 

At university it is essential that you give credit when you include the ideas of others in your own work. Failure to do so will result in serious academic sanctions. The system of referencing most commonly used in universities is the APA/Harvard system. Please follow the links below for more information:

http://library.curtin.edu.au/local/docs/referencing/apa.pdf 

http://www.canberra.edu.au/studyskills/writing/sources#Harvard

http://www.tlu.fbe.unimelb.edu.au/pdfs/apastyle.pdf 

Other Resources

If you would like to develop your reading skills, these websites provide plenty of stimulating articles.

National Geographic: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/

Guardian Unlimited: http://www.guardian.co.uk/

The following link provides access to an online writing lab with explanations, workshops, exercises, and links to other writing help centers. There is a section especially for ESL students with a grammar refresher course.

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/760/01/

These two websites have some great listening activities on current, high-interest topics and issues:

Englishmeeting.com: http://www.englishmeeting.com/

BBC Learning English site: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/index.shtml

Well... That's all from me folks. I do hope that you find all this useful!

Enjoy!

Mr Lee

Sholarships Info

Hi ya'll,

The following links provide information on the various scholarships offered to Indonesian citizens. If you are considering studying in one of the countries mentioned below, it is definitely worth taking a look at these!

For the United Kingdom;

http://www.chevening.com/

http://scholarship.bursa-lowongan.com/british-chevening-award-2009-2010/

For the USA;

http://www.aminef.or.id/aminef.php

For Australia;

http://www.adsindonesia.or.id/

For Europe;

http://ec.europa.eu/index_en.htm

http://www.delidn.ec.europa.eu/en/relations/relations_1_3fiche_em.htm

http://www.delidn.ec.europa.eu/en/special/bluebook/BB07-ENAnnex4.pdf

This list is by no means exhaustive, so please feel free to share if you know of or find out about other suitable scholarships.

All the best!

Mr Lee

Knicks Poetry Slam: Semi Finals 2009; Amjay's Performance

Taylor Mali on what teachers make

Scratch & Dent Dreams--Slam Poetry

PR-GTV: Knicks Poetry Slam 2009 - B. Yung - 3rd Place

Compare & contrast essay guidelines

Dear students,

If you would like more information about compare contrast essays, as covered in class, you will find some excellent supplementary materials by clicking through the links below.

I suggest that you save copies to your computer so that you can access them easily later.

This site has a great example of a Venn diagram;
http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/venn/venn.pdf

This site gives a very detailed explanation of point by point and block organization;
http://www.sbcc.edu/learningresources/website/WL/downloads/WritingaCompareContrastEssay.pdf

This site lists common compare and contrast signal words and example sentences;
http://urbandreams.ousd.k12.ca.us/lessonplans/extended/9/garland/docs/Compare_Contrast_Intro.pdf

This site gives detailed explanations and examples of distinguishing features found in the compare / contrast essay, including introductions & thesis statements. There are also some good practice exercises;
http://www1.uprh.edu/ccc/Ingles/Comparison%20and%20Contrast%20Essay/Comparison%20and%20Contrast%20Essay%20FINAL.pdf

I hope it's a help.

Enjoy!

Mr Lee

The Alchemist - Book Report

Dear students,

Your final assignment is to write a short book report on the the title you have just read, 'The Alchemist'.

Please don't worry if this is your first time writing one, as you will probably discover that it is not as difficult as you think. However, if you have any problems or are not sure about any of the questions, please come and see me or contact me through the blog. I will be more than happy to answer any questions you might have.

There are no exact guidelines as to how much you should write. Just be sure to answer each question fully and to the best of your ability.

You may review the book's content at:

http://www.ramblinggypsy.com/

Follow the link below to download the book report template.

http://www.education-world.com/tools_templates/bookreport_fiction.doc

The due date for this assignment is Friday 6th November 2009.

Good luck!

The Alchemist - Vocabulary Quiz 2 of 3

Please learn the following words in preparation for the quiz on Friday 2nd October.

1. mumble
2. grouch
3. rueful
4. immense
5. curse
6. incessant
7. conspire
8. convince
9. vain
10. divination
11. coincidence
12. capricious
13. murmur
14. bugle
15. nostalgia
16. intuition
17. balk
18. burden
19. freight
20. treacherous
21. detour
22. nocturnal
23. fringe
24. collaborate
25. manifestation
26. mania
27. incredulous
28. obscure
29. groan
30. content

Good luck!

The Alchemist

In the story that the King of Salem tells Santiago, the wisest of the wise men tells the boy that the secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon. p32 to p34.

What does the wise man mean?

What do you think is the secret to happiness?

The deadline for comments on this assignment is Friday 18th Sept.

Happy blogging!

Mr. Lee

The Alchemist - Vocabulary Quiz 1

Please learn the following words and phrases in preparation for the quiz on Monday 14th September and continued reading of The Alchemist.


1. resist
2. abased
3. wander
4. fidget
5. be/become accustomed to
6. infidels
7. depend on
8. retaliate
9. whet one's appetite
10. lamenting
11. signify
12. weep
13. marvel
14. assemble
15. converse
16. perceive
17. descend
18. profound
19. gesture
20. tense


Good luck!

Mr. Lee

The Alchemist

Dear students,

King Mechizedek tells the boy that when we are children," everything is clear and everything is possible," but as time passes mysterious forces convince us to abandon our dreams" (p. 23).

Do you think this is true?

What are the "mysterious forces" that threaten to hold us back as we grow older?

Please discuss these points with your classmates on the blog.

Mr. Lee

The Alchemist

Dear students,

You may read Paulo Coehlo's biography by clicking on the link below.

http://www.paulocoelho.com.br/engl/dow/Bio.pdf

The following link allows you to download pdf excerpts from many of Paulo Coehlo's titles. In fact, you can actually download the complete novel for many titles; Paulo Coehlo's first work "The pilgrimage" is one such example!

http://www.ramblinggypsy.com/

Enjoy!

Mr. Lee

40 Years of Silence

Dear Students,

Please follow the links below to find out further information about the film "40 Years of Silence".

http://www.40yearsofsilence.com
http://www.40yearsofsilence.com/page/links

Once on the website homepage, please pay particular attention to the menus titled "Film", "Forum", and "Press", where you will find numerous articles and letters of interest.

Happy Blogging,

Mr. Lee

Reminder

Dear Students,

I would just like to remind you that all novels that were lent out to you over the school holiday must be returned no later than Friday 31st July 2009.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Mr. Lee

A new update, let's see if it is last long enough before everyone gets bored of it